DELAYED STRENGTH
AND MUSCLE FUNCTION
GAINS WITH BLOOD
FLOW RESTRICTED
TRAINING.
Tom Platz did not use blood flow restricted training,
and for good reason, as indicated in this study.HYPOTHESIS
The principle of training
speciicity states that muscle
will adapt to the speciic
demands placed on it. Blood
low restricted training (BFR)
places speciic demands on
muscle tissue such as high
metabolic stress and high
momentary muscle fatigue.
One would expect that this
type of training would result in
signiicant increases in muscle
strength and/or strength
endurance.RESEARCH
The University of Southern
Denmark took 20 subjects and
split them into two groups; one
group performed 20 workouts
of leg extensions (four sets
to failure at 20% 1RM) with
BFR over the course of 19
days while the other group
performed the same workout
with the same amount of
weight and reps but without
BFR. Strength and muscle
biopsies were taken before,
during, and ive and 12 days
after training had stopped.FINDINGS
Gains in rapid muscle force-
generating capacity and
strength were not manifested
before 12 days after all training
had stopped. The group that
didn’t use blood low restriction
experienced no changes at all.CONCLUSION
Blood low–restricted exercise
produces substantial metabolic
stress which reduces muscle
contractile capacity for an
extended period (days to
weeks) resulting in delayed
manifestation of strength gains
after training has stopped.APPLICATION
This study had subjects
perform BFR training every
weekday, twice per day. This
led to prolonged decrements in
strength and delayed strength
gains for nearly two weeks
after training stopped. If
incorporating BFR into your
routine, leave suicient
recovery time between BFR
sessions and if strength
becomes stagnant or even
declines, discontinue BFR
training for a couple weeks.COURTESY OF WEIDER HEALTH AND FITNESSBY BRYAN HAYCOCK, PH.D.